KUCHING: Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Bengoh, a boarding school in Ulu Bengoh, some 40km away from here, is in dire need of repair and upgrading.
The school, which currently houses 98 students and 13 teachers, has a leaking roof, severely damaged ceiling, worn-out furniture, poor drainage system and cracked walls. PKR Mambong branch chairman, Willie Mongin, lamented that the school, which houses pupils from interior villages, was being left to rot and nobody seemed to care.
“Education officers did drop by the school to conduct repair cost assessment, but nothing came out of it,” he claimed.
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| The sorry state of a structure in SK Bengoh that requires urgent upgrading. |
Hence, pupils and teachers had to bear with humid and sweltering hot classrooms every day as the ceiling fans were out of order, too.
“In the kitchen, some cooking utensils are spoilt; hence, the school has problems preparing food for the pupils.”
Aggrieved by what he saw, Willie appealed to the government to initiate repair work without further delay as the teachers and pupils had suffered long enough.
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| Willie pointing to the damaged walkway at SK Bengoh. |
He said under the National Education Blueprint 2013-2025, the federal government had promised that all schools in both states would have priority when it comes to infrastructural upgrading and improvement works and to be fully equipped with facilities before the end of last year.
“This is already 2015, but there is no sign that the federal government or Education Ministry will fast track the implementation of this blueprint.” Last year, during the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly, the elected representatives were informed that the Education Department had made 230 applications for infrastructure upgrades, improvement works, and facilities for schools under the first, second and third rolling plans (2011-2014) costing RM4.59 billion.
However, only five projects were approved.-Borneo Post
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